Promises of spring await despite the gloom
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Gardening on the Edge by Diana Wayland
We stand on the brink of spring, yet it feels far from it. It is three weeks since the Celtic Pagan festival of Imbolc marked the time of year spring is poised to stir, yet the weather remains as wintry as ever.
As I write, the hazy sunshine of the earlier day has given way to a low, grey, encompassing cloud that is now weeping. It looks bleak and cold. It is bleak and cold!
Some sunshine earlier in the week brought upper twenties Centigrade to our conservatory, although the wind remained chill, even bitter.
Without the wind, those days would probably have been almost pleasant outside. A brief spell of mildness has been eclipsed by another spell of chill – if mercifully above freezing – weather in our windy corner.
Although the snowdrops are now well up, the daffodils and native bluebells are only just showing, and the Crocus tommasinianus, which normally flowers in mid to late February, only just peeped above ground earlier this week.
We seem locked into winter, and locked into lockdown. The two now seem to be working in tandem to make spring and summer still a wistful dream.
But there are signs things are starting to move forward, at least horticulturally. Seed tatties, delayed by the below-zero weather, are now in stock. My records show I did not set them out to chit until March 10 last year. So, although it feels later, it might not be.
Other worries include whether we will be able to obtain materials to continue our work of trying to turn a gale alley into the semblance of a garden.
Bare root plants need to be bought now, timber is needed for fencing and bed edging, chickenwire, windbreak fabric and weed control fabric are all needed. Some, like the weed fabric, we have been able to obtain throughout the winter in our (rare) shopping trips, but bare root plants and bulk timber are more problematical.
I have spoken before about how beneficial gardening can be to lifting mental health. I think it is even more important this year, now everyone is worn down after a year of restrictions.
But at least at this time of year, no matter how unpromising it is currently looking, with the bleached grass, the grey rain, the nondescript sky, at least we know spring will eventually arrive. Even if it is late, or slow and cold as it was last year.
This means that now is the time to be preparing: buying seeds, onion setts, seed tatties; even if spring seems as far away as ever.
Just thinking about starting the new growing season is encouraging. And, if you are new to it, start planning where you will be growing your crops. Draw a rough plan. Work out if you need to create a bed, and then how. Order compost and fertiliser. Picture how it will look. This can be an exciting and enlivening time.
I have managed to obtain most of my vegetable and ornamental seeds for this year. A number I got online as local retailers don't normally stock them. There is some promise there, at least. Varieties like Dwarf Bean Amethyst or Celeriac Prinz, which I was unable to get last year, are now waiting in my seed store for sowing in mid April indoors.
That is a promise that will be fulfilled.